An unbelievable experience it has been thus far! One can always imagine how things can be when traveling abroad, but I must state how out of the ordinary my experiences have been in comparison to my expectations coming here to Shanghai. To begin with, the 1st three days are going to be the epic-center of the culture shock experience in Shanghai (assuming you have never been around the Chinese culture). This rapid growing city can be a lot to take in all at once. It holds citizen from all over the globe, as well as many citizen migrating from within the country-side. It’s quite the melting-pot.
Living accommodations did not meet expectations. We are staying in that it’s considered student housing for international students. Not the cleanest of places, but hey, it’s part of the experience. the surrounding areas of our dormitories is equivalent of that of a college town in America. Lots of restaurants, bars, and business that make college living a bit easier.
The food was something I am still trying to get used to; and not in a bad way. They have so much diverse cuisine here, a strong stomach is quite necessary for it. Nonetheless, it is an amazing experience to try so many different kinds of foods! One of my favorites so far was the traditional Hot-Pot style cuisine! My Chinese roommate took us the 1st week here and we all fell in love with it!
So far, I have explored quite a bit of the city. I have found very typical Chinese markets and sectors, as I have also seen and found many ex-pat sites. Many people are always worried about the possibility of ever living in Shanghai due to the culture change. I say it is probably one of the easiest cities to get around! But having appreciation for the Chinese culture will come in handy. So far its my favorite place in the world, Let’s see where we end up in the next 3 months!
